Focusrite Scarlett 8i6 3rd Gen USB Audio Interface Recording, Songwriting, & Streaming High-Fidelity, Studio Quality Recording, With Transparent Playback

This is great hardware. I use to do my production hobby work on a desktop that died prematurely. My previous incarnation I ran a R-Bus into my Roland VM-3100 and additionally ran a SoundBlaster Emulator X. Unfortunately running those on an outdated laptop was not an option. I recently purchased a HP Laptop and tried running FL Studio. The audio out was lacking so I decided to look into audio interfaces and their software bundles. I already own an outdated version of Reason, Cubase, and Ableton. So I wanted to see what could I beef up my arsenal with. After seeing what Focusrite had I was thoroughly impressed. My next need was midi i/o. Again I had outboard gear in the form of two MidiSport 8x8. This filled in that gap with it being MIDI capable. My next option was multiple audio inputs and outputs. This more than covered my needs. I just needed a headphones out and it has two. I also needed something to connect my monitors and this was covered. I can chain my MIDI and use my patch bay if needed to route audio in. This device covered more than I needed which is perfect! Setup was pretty much straightforward but a tiny bit awkward. Everything on the Focusrite side is in perfect condition. Downloading everything is simple due to a lack of a DVD drive. Unfortunately I hit a brick wall with the software bundle. Some of the instructions are lacking. After finding a way to download most of the software I found myself at a crossroads. ProTools decided to discontinue their support of PT First. So that DAW isn’t an option for use. You’ll have to rely on Ableton’s Live in order to get any production work done. My other issue is with a bundled reverb. It crashes my DAW of choice every single time. I have a support ticket open for it so who knows if there’s a fix or if it’s just a problem with my configuration. There’s a lot of people with the same issue and different DAWs…??? Overall I love my new system. It’s been able to resurrect my love of production.

***If you are looking for an industry professional or musician's take, read another review. I am neither.*** I write this review with utter sadness, because I bought this after returning the Apollo Solo. That Apollo Solo was so beautiful. Sounded so fantastic. Had features I could only dream about. Sadly, my setup just could not handle it. One day, I will upgrade my hardware that includes a Thunderbolt 3 header. Then I can buy the X4 variant. Then the API and Maag EQ will be waiting for me in my UA account. With that obituary out of the way, let's talk about the Focusrite 8i6. I wanted something I could rackmount, but I did not need 8 mic preamps. I am just one person, and I am not recording a band, or having guests on a podcast or radio show. I am simply messing with "music", even though I am not a musician or audio engineer. I might just put this on a 1u rack shelf, because my space is limited. I encourage Focusrite to make something to make the smaller units rackmountable, even if I have to buy it separately. Thank you in advance. *Features* The features are straightforward. 4 line ins, MIDI, coax, 4 outs, 2 pres, 2 headphone jacks, and maybe some other things I forgot. That leaves plenty of flexibility for my personal setup. The one feature I am really loving is the Focusrite Control software. Very easy to use, and has a loopback feature. That is very nice, because I do not have to resort to Voicemeeter Banana. My setup hates Voicemeeter Banana. So anytime I can avoid that, I am one happy guy. The old 2i2 does not have the loopback feature. So now I can stream without having to use the native Windows drivers to stream. *Price* It's not UA level price, but it is not exactly cheap, either. If you do not need that many inputs or features, you might be better off getting something smaller. However, if you want loop back, etc., make sure you double check what the software offers you! Do not be afraid to look and ask around. *Included software* I am sure some will find the bundled software useful and good. I am sure it is wonderful. However, I have Ableton Live 11 Standard and Studio One 5 Pro. The included Control panel is really nice. *Would I recommend it?* Yes. If it suits your needs. There's lots of interfaces to choose from. The only advice I have for you is, do not fall for the shills or the gear snobs. They are not paying your bills. Always, always get what serves you best, and what is in your budget. The point is to have fun and be productive. Not show the size of your lollipop.

pro audio at an affordable price, included software a bonus. been using it since 2022 without issue, clear accurate sound.

Hardware is great. Feels and looks top quality. Controls are smooth as silk and feel solid. The software is just OK. I think the interface could be even clearer with a few routing diagrams instead of separate screens for ins/outs. One issue I'm running into is a lot of buzz like open ground that appears when the USB cable is plugged in from the computer (no hubs or other USB stuff in between). If I unplug that cable, all is silent, so I don't think it is a problem with the Focusrite. Still working it out but all devices are on the same UPS. Still trying other configurations and am going to try another computer just to see.

There are a few tricks with this one. First - don't even try to use a USB 3.0 port. No matter what cord length I used in a 3.0 port on two different machines it just would not connect well enough to record into Cakewalk or Audacity. I could use up to a 10 foot cord on any 2.0 port I tried. I say 'barely enough' because there are only 2 input ports that are suitable for microphones (XLR). There are also 4 other standard 1/4" jacks for input but they are all mono. For a 2-piece band you would have a microphone and instrument input for each with 2 inputs for any back-tracking, drum machine, etc. If you had a 3-piece you could use the 2 inputs for the 3rd but you would need a way to power them. There IS an SPDIF and Midi input but both were simply not a choice when I went Piano shopping. You may find a bit of a learning curve when it comes to the focusrite drivers and they occasionally have to be re-installed. Of course, this may just be updates from Microsoft 'doing their thing'. I like this machine but it isn't quite enough for my purposes.

I bought this Audio Interface because it was recommended for Linux users. It works and sounds great.

I can't say enough good things about this product. Paired with my Røde mic, my voiceover auditions have truly never sounded better compared to what I was using (Yeti Mic plugged directly into my Mac). The setup easy and comprehensive, providing an extremely user-friendly setup process to get you up and running not only with the device but also the included apps (though it should be said the AVID app does not work with Mac OS X 10.15 "Catalina"--you need to use the included Ableton Live Lite app or Garageband, which has been working great for me). The "Air" feature does had a really nice feel to the vocals, for sure. I like using it for specific scenes/characters to provide a different feel to the recording. The tech support is *excellent*. My headphone's adaptor got stuck in one of the monitor outputs--just got caught in something, not sure what happened, but it just would *not* come out. I was able to use the other other jack just fine while I worked on a fix. Tech support handled the RMA quickly and I got a replacement unit in about a week. Very smooth process and everyone was very, very nice and supportive throughout. I am just glad I kept the box around to ship it back! Anyway, I use this primarily for in-home recording for voice over auditions and have test it out for streaming purposes as well---works great for both applications. I fear that this might be overkill--you can do a LOT with this box -- but I am very, very happy with the purchase. My only regret is not having bought this earlier, I would have booked more gigs!

This piece of equipment is exactly what I was hoping for: solid, heavy, and sounds great. There are two well-documented "drawbacks" I've found: 1) You can't have all of the analog inputs (8 physical inputs on the device itself) and the two PC inputs (stereo playback from USB-connected PC) active at the same time. It makes sense, though, otherwise it would be the 10i6 and not the 8i6. 2) The mix for headphone output 1 is locked to the mix for outputs 1 & 2, and the mix for headphone output 2 is locked to the mix for outputs 3 & 4. Again, this makes sense because otherwise this would be the 8i10 if it had four additional output channels (L&R for each headphone output). So these aren't "drawbacks" per se. It's just designed that way and you have to plan around it.